Neymar will stay at PSG & Verratti is the best midfielder in the world – Paredes

Paris Saint-Germain's Leandro Paredes has voiced his belief that Barcelona target Neymar will remain with the French champions past the next transfer window and heaped praise on fellow midfielder Marco Verratti, who he believes is the best in the world.

Neymar has long been linked with a return to Camp Nou since his record move to the French capital, with the Liga outfit having been prepped to try and prise the Brazilian away from Parc des Princes before the coronavirus outbreak.

“We talk a lot, he calls me all the time,” the Argentine said in an interview with Fox Argentina. “I'm calm, he'll stay with us.”

Paredes was also asked to name who he thinks is the best midfielder in the world, given his intimate knowledge of the position, to which he replied: “I think it's Verratti. It's impossible to take the ball off him and he's very aggressive.”

Having so much quality in their side has seen PSG scoop the Ligue 1 title with regularity since their big-money takeover in 2001, although the Champions League remains elusive for the French side.

Paredes believes that is down to mentality, and feels that he and his team-mates have been developing the mental strength required to go all the way in Europe's top club competition.

“I think we're changing the mentality of the club, as we saw in the second leg against Borussia Dortmund,” he said of March's 3-2 aggregate victory in the round of 16.

“The mentality is different in the league than in the Champions League. In Europe, you cannot relax for a single second, while the level of Ligue 1 can allow you to do that.

“The superior quality of our players means that we can always win in the end. If we change our mentality in the Champions League with the same players, the same team, the will to win will make us victorious.”